Many different fields require the management of flow processes to execute programs and plans effectively and efficiently while matching competing demands for limited resources. A hydroelectric power firm, for example, needs to manage generating capacity in concert with water supply and water storage capabilities to meet electrical demand over multiple time periods. In addition, this firm may be also connected to a grid to which it can sell power or buy power; thus, shared resources and/or flows may be involved. It also involves the process of replanning the flow and use of resources as time passes and events occur, often not in accordance with the original plan; such as in this example, lower rainfall diminishes water supply and higher temperatures could increase electrical demand.
Likewise, the effective and efficient management of a manufacturing firm's flow of materials from suppliers through plants and a distribution network to customers requires coordinating numerous different flows of materials; resources such as suppliers, machines, personnel, transportation, and customers; processing activities; and usually, necessitates collecting, accessing, and utilizing information derived from many different sources.
Manufacturing planners for multiple time periods which employ computers are well known. Such planners focus on a segment of the flow process such as planning the flow or production through one plant or facility over-looking interdependency or interrelationships, and the finite capacity of resources and flows. Others have focused on solely the flows in the distribution network; again, without regard to capacities and/or integrating the flow processes of the firm.
Others have attempted utilizing spread sheets programs and have been limited by the complexity of the number of flows, resources, and processes that can be employed along with the result that a non-optimal solution is produced. Some have attempted linear programming or variations on the technique to develop plans. Planners are not well equipped to operate and interpret the results, and have found these tools cumbersome to use.
The management of flow processes, which can change in time, have complex interrelationships and interdependencies including constraits which can present serious problems to effective planning of flow processes. Inefficient and incompatiable solutions to these problems can result in having higher cost, poor utilization, and ineffective customer service in a manufacturing setting. Visualization of the solution and the complex interrelationships and interdependencies is most important.
What is needed is an effective display of the flow processes as a function of the associated spatial and temporal aspects with a data base of information relating to the flow processes including resources, processing activities, and commodity flows. In addition, such a system should be able to display aggregate information to reduce the complexity of the display. It should also have the capability to display user defined sets of the flow processes and view them or to create various sets and manipulate the sets to generate new displays. It should also have the ability to perform ad hoc displays.
The system should allow information to be imported into the database to build the flow processes components of resources, processes and commodities; or to be built from the display by creating icons representing resources and processes and connecting them through commodity flows or lines.
The method and systems should also provide an optimal solution to the prospective planning problem and the ability to visualize various aspects of the prospective plan over multiple time periods as the plan is updated.
In addition, such a system, most advantageously, would make use of windows to display additional information beyond that which cannot conveniently be placed on a graphical display.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,937,743 there is disclosed a method for the prospective scheduling, periodic monitoring and dynamic management of a plurality of interrelated and interdependent resources using a computer system. The method includes providing a data base containing information about the resource and graphically displaying utilization and availability of the resources as a function of time. Indicia can be made to appear on the display to provide visual identification of symbols as well as information about scheduling, status and conflicts involving the resources. In addition, access to the data base can be made available to provide a continuous update of the display so that the display of the resources is for the most recent data in the data base. Access to the data base can also permit the operator to call up a wide variety of information about the resource and can also be used to track events and procedures. The method does not involve the use of spatial displays and does not pertain to scheduling or planning any manufacturing operation in which the resources transform a material or consist of a series of transformations called processes and which involves the flow or movement of materials.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,336,589 there is disclosed a warehouse product monitoring and control system which includes a distribution audit system computer which receives batch picking information on a recording medium identifying each transaction or article to be picked with a unique number. Associated with each unique number is processing information for controlling the sorting of the article within the system. The same number, unique for each article, is contained on a label positioned on each article as it is picked. The computer control provides continuous monitoring of the article as it is scanned by one or more label reading devices such that the picking and sorting status of each article to be picked can be continuously monitored. The system includes operator interface terminals and printers for providing a variety of status reports to the operating personnel such that the operational status of the system can be continuously monitored.